Republican Senators Propose Dividing Israel Aid from Biden’s $105 Billion Spending Request
While calls to bolster Israel’s defenses have received broad bipartisan support, Republicans are increasingly divided over continued funding for Ukraine.
Four Republican senators introduced a bill on Thursday to provide about $14 billion in military assistance to Israel without funding a larger $105 billion defense spending proposal by President Joe Biden.
The Republican bill, dubbed “The Israel Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2023,” includes $10.6 billion for assistance to Israel through the Department of Defense (DOD) and provides Israel with another $3.5 billion for foreign military financing. President Biden’s $105 billion defense spending proposal calls for a similar amount of support for Israel but ties that funding to his other priorities, including $61 billion in new aid for Ukraine.
Calls to bolster Israel’s defenses have received broad bipartisan support after Hamas terrorists killed hundreds of civilians in southern Israel on Oct. 7. On the other hand, Republicans are increasingly divided over continued efforts to prop up the Ukrainian military in its ongoing war with neighboring Russia.
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“My colleagues and I firmly believe that any aid to Israel should not be used as leverage to send tens of billions of dollars to Ukraine. Any package that does so would result in funds and resources being delayed in Israel’s time of need,” Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kans.), the bill’s main sponsor, said in a Thursday press statement. “The legislation we’ve introduced provides the aid to Israel requested by the Biden Administration and should be considered by the Senate immediately.”
Sens. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), and Mike Lee (R-Utah) all co-sponsored the bill to split the proposed spending for Israel from President Biden’s larger funding request.
Mr. Vance said the circumstances surrounding Israel’s conflict with Hamas and Ukraine’s conflict with Russia are unique and “should be handled individually.”
“Misguided attempts to combine them will only delay Israel receiving the support they need,” Mr. Vance added. “Now is not the time
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